I was not a fan of 2004's The Punisher. Lions Gate Films released a DVD of it, and I stayed away. A year later, they released a DVD of another film, which I also avoided. That movie was The Punisher: Extended Cut, and I must apologize to director Jonathan Hensleigh and all those involved for not writing this two years ago.
You know the story. No synopsis.
What The Punisher left me feeling in 2004, was haze. I felt like I should've liked it, as it told the story well, borrowing in no small part from Garth Ennis' superb graphic novel, Welcome Back Frank. For that alone, I wanted to like it... but I couldn't. I don't know why, I just didn't feel much of... anything.
Seventeen minutes have been added to the newer cut. The Punisher: Extended Cut runs a solid two hours and twenty minutes, still missing about thirty-seven or so from the original cut Hensleigh presented the studio. I don't know if we'll ever see that one, but I'd certainly pay to. The first big addition is a fan-friggin'-tastic animated intro. It's so awesome I might watch it again real soon by itself. Aside from that, and an overwhelmingly quieting, dark side-story which has been reinserted (and should have never been cut), I honestly don't know what makes this film so much better than the cut I saw almost four years ago.
Technically, the production design is stunning. Effective use of negative space is really the bare minimum of what I can cite here. The haunting, superb score by Carlo Siliotto at some times echos Elfman's Batman score and at others that of Requiem for a Dream by Clint Mansell. Much like last year's award-worthy horror epic The Mist (in which The Punisher's Tom Jane also stars), the score here is understated and lets the actions and words of the characters speak for themselves. While writing this, I find myself using rather more verbose and delicate prose than is typical. I don't feel like I'm exactly myself right now, a feeling I generally seal away for after Deer Hunter or Requiem viewings. I've never quite felt this way after seeing a superhero film.
That's not a jab at the genre, if you feel affronted; I simply mean that within Jane's Frank Castle, despite the character's questionable morals, there lies a humanity that has reached out to me. The B-movie schlock you might identify Castle's being with is not really there, and when it is (say, after taking down the behemoth interior redecorator that is The Russian), it's a period at the end of a long, elaborate sentence, and not necessarily a domineering character trait.
When I first saw the film, I felt annoyed at Travolta's lack of material. But looking at it again, I see things... when John Barrymore played Jekyll in the silent age, he was a clean-cut man in control of his humanity. Without anything but visual drama to work off of, he invented the technique of letting his hair muffle up mid-shot in his transformations into the subhuman Hyde. If you haven't seen the first instance of this in the film I speak of, look for the clip online; it's educational. Likewise, Travolta's mob king, Howard Saint, seems to be losing his grip on himself throughout The Punisher as much as that on his empire. The scraggly hair appearing from the slicked-back styling is a simple visual throwaway that, while not necessarily adding dimensionality to the character, certainly makes tangible his descent from sainthood. It also looks damned cool.
The film works. I don't know why, so much, but the glaring - but not high-gloss - cinematography and the score and the script, the acting and the style, they just fit. It's a cold, excellent film and it's worth more scratch than you think it is.
The DVD looks and sounds awesome, but isn't packed. A commentary on the previous release hasn't been ported here, but there is the good cut of the film, so that's a plus. An extensive Punisher comic book cover art gallery has been included, as well as a brief making-of, exclusively detailing this cut of the film. Five trailers for Lions Gate flicks, though curiously not for The Punisher, and not much else. There is some freakin' sweet packaging, but my copy had some weak adhesive, so be careful opening the case. Oh, and you may be able to get it with a little slip of artwork by the awesome Tim Bradstreet. So there's that.
Seriously, just stop. Stop reading and go get this disc. Complain to me here if you think I'm wrong - I'll listen. For me, though, this is the best Marvel flick outside the Spider-Man series. I mean that.
"The Punisher: The Extended Cut" is on sale November 21, 2006 and is rated R. Action, Comic Book. Directed by Jonathan Hensleigh. Written by Jonathan Hensleigh, Michael France. Starring John Travolta, Rebecca Romijn, Thomas Jane.
